Campaigns' charter company warned ahead of time about ATA's $$ problems

[rainbow4321]

Real comforting to those stranded passengers who showed up for their ATA flights this morning to find the airline and it's workers GONE, I'm sure.
Would have been nice for THEM to have a few weeks notice.
And, even less comforting,(at least here at DFW airport) which airline stepped in to give these stranded fliers a ride...Southwest Airline, on the day that THEIR brass was in front of Congress about FAA/safety issues/Southwest's whistleblowers.




The charter company for both campaigns knew weeks ago what was going to happen and switched carriers.


http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/04/ata-folds-does-this-ground-hil.html


The nation's 10th largest air carrier, ATA Airlines, abruptly shut down operations today, stranding thousands of travelers, most of whom you probably never heard of.

But ATA had, until recently, two extremely prominent frequent fliers: Democratic candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, who for months crisscrossed the nation in his-and-hers chartered ATA 737s.

No worries for the candidates and their entourages of courtiers, journalists and Secret Service agents. The charter company the campaigns use caught wind of problems at ATA and switched to other carriers three weeks ago. (The McCain campaign flies JetBlue.)